I've created this blog more or less as a means to track my progress as a day-trader and to try to learn from my mistakes. I've been trading for a bit over 6 months now and so far, while I have recently begun to make money, it is far from consistent and I am not pleased overall with my progress.
What I have learned so far though is that it is very very important to think. Think about each trade before you get into and out of it. Think about the trade immediately after the fact. Think about the trade in the larger context of the market's environment at that time. Think about the day's trading when you get home. Think about what trades were good, which were bad, and why. Think about the role luck had to play. Just... think.
I haven't done enough of this, which is why I'm creating this now. Writing down the thoughts of a day is the best way to infuse them into our minds and force ourselves to review the events carefully and dispassionately.
By nature, I am an intuitively-driven person. There is nothing wrong with letting your intuition guide your trading... but intuition is not great at specifics. Logical thought is much better at that. So while Intuition might tell you about overall trends, and that a good buying opportunity is nearby, rational thought better be the force making you press the key. Distinguishing between these two forces, and thus distinguishing between an intuitively-motivated trade and a rationally motivated trade, I believe, has been my greatest struggle. Requiring myself to write down my thoughts and motivations for each trade should greatly affect my ability to do this, so it is with that idea in mind that I trust this blog will aid my transition into a successful professional trader.
